The present invention relates generally to the fields of computers and knowledge management, and more particularly to a system and method for filtering and evaluating information through on-line debates conducted over a network, such as the Internet.
There has recently been a tremendous growth in the number of computers connected to the Internet. A client computer connected to the Internet can download digital information from server computers. Client application software typically accepts commands from a user and obtains data and services by sending requests to server applications running on the server computers. A number of protocols are used to exchange commands and data between computers connected to the Internet. The protocols include the File Transfer Protocol (FTP), the Hyper Text Transfer Protocol (HTTP), the Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP), and the Gopher document protocol.
The HTTP protocol is used to access data on the World Wide Web, often referred to as xe2x80x9cthe Web.xe2x80x9d The Web is an information service on the Internet providing documents and links between documents. It is made up of numerous Web sites located around the world that maintain and distribute electronic documents. A Web site may use one or more Web server computers that store and distribute documents in a number of formats, including the Hyper Text Markup Language (HTML). An HTML document contains text and metadata (commands providing formatting information), as well as embedded links that reference other data or documents. The referenced documents may represent text, graphics, or video.
A Web Browser is a client application or an integrated operating system utility that communicates with server computers via FTP, HTTP and Gopher protocols. Web browsers receive electronic documents from the network and present them to a user. The Web is continually evolving with new standards and protocols: Cascading Style Sheets, client-side JavaScript, and XML to name a few. Moreover, the Web is evolving from the passive serving of static documents to an environment of dynamic and distributed processing. Java applets, ActiveX controls, DCOM, Server side scripting and others have stretched the boundaries of what was traditionally xe2x80x9cthe Webxe2x80x9d.
An intranet is a local area network containing Web servers and client computers operating in a manner similar to the World Wide Web described above. Typically, all of the computers on an intranet are limited to one company or organization.
The present invention is most suited to, but not limited to, uses in connection with the Internet. It may also be deployed on intranets and extranets utilizing Internet standards and protocols as well as other LANs and WANs. It is not limited to any particular network protocol, such as TCP/IP or HTTP, or any particular client or server technology, such as a particular browser, Web server, or operating system.
The Internet and related technologies are enabling unprecedented levels of communication and access to information. Under the weight of this abundance of information, traditional mechanisms for filtering and evaluating information are breaking down, with negative results for society and public policy. It is becoming very difficult for citizens to determine what is xe2x80x9ctruexe2x80x9d, or even to identify the key points of contention, in areas as diverse as science, medicine, domestic policy, foreign policy, and history. Anybody can erect a Web site, gaining wide audiences for distortions, lies, and misinformation (e.g., holocaust denial). And once the information is made accessible via the Internet, people can consume it without understanding its source or its veracity. Quackery is put on par with peer-reviewed research.
The problem of filtering and evaluating information impacts all aspects of modern life:
An overworked doctor trying to understand the best treatment for high blood pressure in the face of an explosion in alternatives and conflicting research results.
A day-trader led astray by Internet xe2x80x9cnewsxe2x80x9d of dubious origin and intent.
A housewife lured into a pyramid scheme.
A lawyer making sense of the maze of laws, regulations, and rulings on emerging topics.
Traditionally, information sources were responsible for filtering and evaluation. Newspapers and TV news organizations had fact checkers, editorial review, and strict standards of reporting. Academic journals had double-blind peer review of articles. The more rigorous the filtering and evaluation, the more respected the source, hence information from the New York Times is more credible than that from other less respected publications.
This system is strained to breaking in the Internet world. Rather than a few widely known sources, information consumers are confronted with thousands of sources. The amount and velocity of information (and related competitive pressures) are so great that even established sources are diluting, compromising, or abandoning their role as information gatekeepers.
A goal of the present invention is to provide a system for helping individuals filter and evaluate conflicting information through the process of on-line debates among a community of interested and informed individuals. The present invention is particularly, but not necessarily, intended for use in supporting on-line debates over the Internet.
The present invention provides an Internet technology-based infrastructure and processes for supporting on-line debates among a community of interested and informed individuals with the goal of helping individuals filter and evaluate conflicting information, claims, arguments and evidence regarding complex issues of fact, policy or belief. Unlike the centralized control over filtering and evaluation inherent in traditional published information sources (e.g., a newspaper), the present invention leverages the inter-connection of the Internet to tap the expertise of users anywhere in the world: filtering and evaluation emerges dynamically from the process of discussion and Debate among interested parties.
The core of the invention is the Argument Base and a Rating Process. The Argument Base organizes discussion into a network of Debates comprising a Proposition under contention and Arguments and Evidence supporting or denying that Proposition. The Rating Process operates to allow the best Arguments and Evidence to be easily identified as well as to identify the key points of controversy in a complex debate. Ratings operate in the Debates much as currency does in an economic system: as a measure of value and as a limited resource that must be conserved and allocated efficiently by participants in order to maximize their interests. Incentives and controls are established so that self-interested behavior by individual participants yields desirable global results: in this case, quality discourse.
In the presently preferred implementation, the infrastructure includes a database, a multi-dimensional direct and indirect Rating Process, Community Services, mechanisms for site organization and operations, and user interfaces. These elements of the invention may be summarized as follows:
The database, in addition to the Argument Base, includes a Reference Library, a Community Directory, Comments and Evaluations, and various supporting information.
The Rating Process xe2x80x9cweightsxe2x80x9d Arguments, References, and users based on the collective expertise and beliefs of participants. Stronger Arguments and Evidence, higher quality sources, and individual expertise will xe2x80x9cbubblexe2x80x9d up. It is this mechanism that supports the filtering and evaluation functions of the invention.
The Community Services control access to, and the ability to contribute to, the Debates. The quality of a Debate is directly related to the quality of participants. The invention incorporates Community Services to support Members as well as hold them accountable to the community. Community Services tracks users"" Credentials and contributions and makes this information available to the Rating Process and, where authorized, other users.
Mechanisms for site organization and operations organize the Debates and Arguments in a way that is meaningful to, and easily navigated by, users. In the presently preferred implementation, the Argument Base is organized into Issue Rooms which are grouped into a topic hierarchy. This supports navigation as well as administration of the site.
User Interfaces are the means by which users interact with the system. In the preferred implementation, users interact with the Argument Base through a xe2x80x9cT-Accountxe2x80x9d interface showing the pro and con Arguments and Evidence sorted by strength as measured by the Rating Process. This allows easy apprehension and navigation of complex discussions.
The present invention allows professionals and interested others to quickly understand the key points of argument surrounding important issues, without time consuming research. It supports achieving consensus where possible on issues of truth or policy. Where consensus is not possible, the structure of the Argument Base supported by the Rating Process help to identify the key facts or assumptions that are in contention, channeling Debate towards key or pivotal issues and reducing effort spent on extraneous and misleading rhetoric. The structure of the Argument Base and the Reference Library support further drilling down to explore specific points of interest in more detail. The more egregious problems of public discourse are reduced:
xe2x80x9cRed Herringxe2x80x9d issues can be countered.
xe2x80x9cTalking pastxe2x80x9d opponents is reduced, as the strength of a Proposition depends not only on the strength of support, but on the weakness of opposition. A proponent cannot ignore a strong counter-argument.
The common tactic of equating repetition with truth is countered as a statement can be made only once. After that, one can support it or counter it, but cannot just say it again.
It is difficult to misquote or take statements out of context when the original source is a hyperlink away.
The implications of effective, Internet-supported Debates are significant, altering areas as diverse as professional education, scientific research, and political decision-making. The present invention is a step in this direction. These and other aspects of the present invention are described in greater detail below.